Best Inspirational Quotes by Famous African-American to Honor Black History Month

United States celebrates Black History Month in February ever since 1976. Inspired by the "Negro History Week," the month is a wonderful time to reflect on the achievements by black Americans in U.S. history. To honor Black History Month, I compiled these inspirational quotes by famous African Americans. These uplifting and motivational quotes are nuggets of wisdom and can be a source of great encouragement when incorporated in our daily lives.

Best Inpirational Quotes to Celebrate Black History Month

"Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise. I rise. I rise." ~ Maya Angelou

"Hold your head high, stick your chest out. You can make it. It gets dark sometimes, but morning comes. Keep hope alive. Don't you surrender! Suffering breeds character, character breeds faith. In the end faith will not disappoint." ~ Jesse Jackson, Keep Hope Alive

"This being Black History Month, I would like to ask people to celebrate the similarities and not focus on the differences between people of color and not of color." ~Lynn Swann

"I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality.... I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word." ~Martin Luther King, Jr.

" If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you to go on in spite of all. And so today I still have a dream." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

"I used to want the words "She tried" on my tombstone. Now I want "She did it." ~ Katherine Dunham

"I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves." ~ Harriet Tubman

"I decided I wasn't going to come down. I was going to fly. I was going to stay up in the air forever." ~ Jesse Owens

"In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe." ~ Michael Jackson

"Every choice in life either moves you forward or keeps you stuck." ~ Oprah Winfrey

"We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., Loving Your Enemies

"It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the treads of that tapestry are equal in value no matter their color." ~ Maya Angelou

"Life is no brief candle to me. It is sort of a splendid torch which I have got hold of for a moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations." ~ George Bernard Shaw

"No matter how far a person can go the horizon is still way beyond you." ~ Zora Neale Hurston

"If you're walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you'll make progress." ~ Barack Obama

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." ~ Barack Obama

"One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals. And so when I hear about negative and false attacks, I really don't invest any energy in them, because I know who I am." ~ Michelle Obama

Which inspirational quote by famous African American has touched your life? Share it in the comment section below.

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Inspirational Quotes By Martin Luther King, Jr.